The housing market is historically unaffordable - but a record number of Americans now own their home without a mortgage

• The share of US homes without a mortgage jumped five percentage points from 2012 to 2022 to a record near 40%, Bloomberg reported. 
• More than half of those homeowners are at retirement age.
• Historically high mortgage rates and home prices have kept many Americans sidelined from the market.

The current US housing landscape is sidelining potential homebuyers, who are scared off by 8% mortgages and stubbornly high prices — but climbing interest rates aren't a problem for the record number of Americans who own their homes without a mortgage.